I tell my son what happened when he comes home from school. I don't believe in protecting children from death. It's a natural part of life. If you protect a child from the death of a goldfish, how are you going to prepare the child for the death of something more serious, like grandma? I believe teaching children about death at an early age gives them a better understanding of coping with it. Often protected and sheltered children can't cope alone and become co-dependent in the real world.

I think it is best to tell the child that the fish died. then go together and get another one if he wants to have another fish. It is not always best to protect a child from harsh realities.

So what happens when great grandmother passes. Do you go out and buy him a new one. Knowing that death is part of life is something we must all face. I venture to guess he still believes in santa clause and the tooth fairy. I think when he finds out the truth he will be sad but it will give you a chance to bond with him as a parient should. How did you deal with the death of your first pet? As adults we forget the knowledge we must share to help our children grow.

how old is your child?
in my opinion,i will tell him the trueth~~~

I'd buy a really different goldfish, see if my child noticed, then if he didn't I'd buy a new child.

I don't think the death of a grandmother and the death of a goldfish are quite in the same ballpark. While children will have to at some time be exposed to death, do you want them in hysterics every time a fish dies? Fish life spans can be very very short. So it might really depend on the child. If he or she takes these things very badly, then go buy a new fish. If the child can understand that fish have short life spans and that every living thing isn't going to die that soon (like mom, dad, brother, sister, etc), then go pick out a fish together.

Goldfish can live for a very long time. It's usually small containers that aren't really good for them, so they suffer.
Dad sank an old bath into the backyard of a house we used to have, and the water was very dark looking, it was difficult to even see the fish, but they were there and grew to quite a size (five inches or more). when we moved, they were put into a huge glass tank, with clean water... and their health declined. It always seems that when we added a new fish, that two older ones would die. However... Yes, tell the kid. It's hard to see any animal die, more so if it's a faithful dog. I'm 44 and still have grief for dogs that I lost earlier... but would I not have them to avoid grief? no, they bought so much joy and love into my life so I'm extremely grateful for that, even though I miss them so much. Later I experienced the death of my parents and I got cancer, but recovered. Tell them the truth, don't tart it up with stories about God and heaven either, just tell them that it happens and hold them when they're sad, be there for them and remember when it happened to you too and how sad you felt.

Wolfie!